Week One

aberration (noun); aberrant (adjective)

                a departure from the usual course; a deviation; an

                abnormal development

syn: deviation                                      ant: expected

A two-headed calf is a biological aberration.

acquiescing (verb)

                to accept, comply, or submit tacitly or passively

syn: agreeing                        ant: opposing

The mayor won the respect and gratitude of the people by acquiescing to their demands for better housing and schools.

adulation (noun)

                excessive praise; flattery

syn: applause                                       ant: abuse; belittle

True leaders can distinguish sincere praise from blind

adulation.

aesthetic (adjective)

                dealing with the beautiful

The Brady Bunch living room is not aesthetically pleasing to the sophisticated audience of today.

anachronism (noun); anachronistic (adjective)

                anything that is out of place in time

syn: misdate                        

Paramount Pictures hired Ronda’s uncle as a technical advisor to look for anachronisms.

Week Two

belittle (verb)

to cause a person or thing to seem little or less

syn: disparage; criticize      ant: encourage; boast

Even though Bertha’s every attempt to dance was belittled by the mean girls, she refused to give up her dream of becoming a ballerina.

blasé (adjective)

                indifferent to or bored with life; unimpressed; bored with pleasure; with a could-care-less attitude

syn: worldly

Your blasé attitude gives your students an erroneous impression of the joys of scholarship.

bliss (noun); blissful (adjective)

                perfect happiness

syn: euphoria                                       ant: sad; despair; anguish

The young movie star could conceive of no greater bliss than

winning an Oscar.

broach (verb)

                to pierce in order to draw the contents; to

introduce or make known for the first time

syn: tap; open                                      ant: close; seal

He did not try to broach the subject of money with parsimonious Patty.

cajole (verb)

                coax; wheedle

syn: beguile                                           ant: dissuade; discourage

I will not be cajoled into granting you your wish.

Week Three

candor (noun)

                the state of being frank, open, and sincere in speech or expression; frankness; openness

syn: straightforward            ant: evasive

The candor and simplicity of his speech impressed all.

censure (noun)

                the act of blaming or condemning sternly

syn: reprimand                                     ant: commend

The reporter’s slanted reporting drew censure from the editorial staff of the newspaper.

charlatan (noun)

                quack; pretender to knowledge

syn: swindler

Because he was unable to substantiate his claim that he

had found a cure for the dread disease, he was called a

charlatan by his colleagues.

conjecture (noun)

                the formation or expression of an opinion without sufficient evidence or proof

syn: guess; presumption     ant: learn ; discovery

Without more evidence, our explanation of the cause of the fire must be little more than conjecture.

credence (noun)

                belief as to truth of something; from the Latin cred    (believe)

syn: trust

Do not place any credence in his promises.

Week Four

cynic (noun)

                one who believes that human conduct is

motivated wholly by self-interest

syn: ironic            

A cynic at all times, he was suspicious of other people’s acts of kindness and generosity.

dearth (noun)

                scarcity that makes dear; inadequate supply

syn: famine; lack                                ant: abundant

The drought has caused a dearth of summer fruit.

derision (noun), deride (verb)

                scornful or contemptuous ridicule; make fun of

syn: ridicule                         

The people greeted his idea with derision and refused to take it seriously.

destitute (adjective), destitution (noun)        

                lacking something needed or desirable;

extremely poor

syn: devoid, poor                                 ant: wealthy

The illness left the family destitute.

deviate (verb)

                to turn aside especially from an established way

syn: digress

Do not deviate from the truth.

Week Five

disconcert (verb)

                to throw into disorder or confusion; confuse; upset

syn: embarrass                                     ant: appease

The lawyer was disconcerted by the evidence produced by his adversary.

divulge (verb)

                to make known

syn: reveal; disclose                            ant: keep secret; hide

Yesterday our teacher read us a composition without divulging the name of the writer.

docile (adjective)

                obedient; easily managed or handled

syn: malleable                      ant: unruly; ungovernable

As docile as he seems today, that old lion was once a ferocious, snarling beast.

elated (adjective); elation (noun)

                very happy or proud; jubilant; in high spirits

                state of being elated; euphoria

syn: intoxicated                   ant: unhappy; blue

Except for my sister, who misses the old neighborhood, the family is elated with our new home.

elicit (verb)

                to draw or bring out or forth; educe

syn: evoke; extract             ant: abandon

The reporter tried to elicit a clear account of the disaster from the victims.

Week Six

empathy (noun)

the action of understanding and being sensitive to another person’s feelings or experiences

syn: sympathy; compassion    ant: animosity; enmity

People tend to appreciate a friend who is capable of empathy.  

enigma (noun); enigmatic (adjective)

                something hard to understand or explain

syn: puzzle; riddle                              

Despite all attempts to decipher the code, it remained an enigma.

enthrall (verb)

                to hold spellbound

syn: charm                                            ant: bore

Every year the Word War II veterans enthrall everyone at the reunion with tales of earlier times.

eschew (verb)

                to abstain from; shun; avoid

syn: escape                                           ant: choose

Sam tried to eschew all display of temper.

exploit

(noun) a notable or heroic act                   syn: adventure

(verb) to take advantage of                        syn: manipulate

His exploits are now famous.

He exploited the poor who needed jobs by hiring them for low wages and long hours.

Week Seven

extol (verb)

                to praise highly

syn: glorify                                            ant: belittle

Parents often like to extol the virtues of the “good old days.”

fallacious (adjective)

                deceptive; wrong; misleading; logically unsound

syn: illogical; invalid           ant: sound; valid

Your reasoning must be fallacious because it leads to a ridiculous answer.

fatalism (noun)

                the acceptance of all things and events as inevitable; submission to fate; accepting fate

With fatalism, he accepted the hardships which befell him.

finesse (noun)

                skill in dealing with awkwardness; extreme delicacy or subtlety in action, performance, or skill

syn: panache                        ant: debacle

The finesse and adroitness of the surgeon impressed the observers in the operating room.

gratuitous (adjective)

                unasked for; undeserved; given, bestowed, or obtained without charge or payment

syn: free; charge less

I resent your gratuitous remarks because no one asked for them.

Week Eight

guise (noun)

general external appearance; aspect; semblance; to appear or go in disguise

syn: costume; mask

In the guise of a plumber, the undercover detective investigated the murder case.

haggard (adjective)

                wild in appearance; having a worn or emaciated

look

syn: tired; exhausted                          ant: fresh; rested

The parents looked haggard as they stumbled back to camp with the lost child.

 hiatus (noun)

                a space  where something is missing; any break in continuity (think time)

syn: pause; interruption     ant: continuity; continuous

After a hiatus of several years, we saw him again.

histrionic (adjective); histrionics (noun)

                (adj) of or pertaining to actors or acting

                (n) dramatic representation; theatricals

We all grew tired of Mable’s histrionics; a common cold, for her, was her death-bed.

incongruous (adjective); incongruity (noun)

                not consistent with or suitable to the

surroundings or associations; not harmonious,

appropriate, or proper

syn: disconnected; confused             ant: compliance

Wearing a fur coat on a hot summer day is incongruous.

Week Nine

infringe (verb); infringement (noun)

                to violate or disregard an agreement or law; to

trespass

syn: encroach                                      

Be careful not to infringe on your neighbor’s rights.

irascible (adjective); irascibility (noun)

                marked by a hot temper and easily aroused

anger

syn: touchy; choleric                          ant: tolerable

The irascible little dog barked at everyone who walked by his yard.

judicious (adjective); judiciousness (noun)

using or showing judgment as to action or practical expediency; discreet; prudent or politic

syn: rational; reasonable                   ant: imprudent; silly

I believe that this plan is not judicious; it is too risky.

knoll (noun)

                a small rounded hill or eminence; hillock

Robert Louis Stevenson’s grave is on a knoll in Samoa.

lampoon

                (noun) a piece of strongly satirical writing

                (verb) to ridicule or satirize

syn: parody                                          ant: to be serious; realistic

The school paper printed a lampoon of the school’s new

locker policy.

Week Ten

lucrative (adjective)

                producing wealth

syn: profitable                                      ant: not-worthwhile

This year’s school dance was not so lucrative; we made only $70 compared to $240 last year.

ludicrous (adjective)

                amusing or laughable through obvious absurdity

syn: comical                                         ant: serious

The comedian Steve Martin has become rich and famous because people enjoy his ludicrous sense of humor.

macabre (adjective & noun)

                having death as the subject; including a

representation of death personified

Books such as Stephen King’s The Shining have been successful because of their attention to the macabre.

mediocre (adjective)

                of moderate or low quality, value, ability or

performance

syn: average; fair  ant: extraordinary; outstanding

We were disappointed because he gave a rather mediocre performance in his role.

misnomer (noun)

                a wrong or unsuitable name

Who could possibly have given such a misnomer as “Little Ed” to a giant wrestler?

Week Eleven

mollify (verb); mollification (noun)

                to soothe in temper or disposition; to appease

syn: calm, quiet                                   ant: arouse

Unable to mollify the angry bull, they plunged under the fence to safety.

mundane (adjective)

                of or pertaining to the world or earth; ordinary

syn: secular; temporal                        ant: eternal

At camp we all shared the mundane chores.

myriad (noun)

                an indefinitely great number

syn: innumerable                 ant: dearth

Myriads of mosquitoes from the swamps invaded our village every twilight.

nonchalant (adjective)

having an air of unconcern or indifference

syn: cool; indifferent          ant: exaggerated; animated

Julio’s seemingly nonchalant manner is actually a cover-up for his nervousness.

nostalgia (noun)

the state of being homesick; a wistful or sentimental yearning to return to some past period in one’s life

Year’s after Kim left her native land, she still became nostalgic around the holidays of her youth.

Week Twelve

odious (adjective)

                observing or causing hatred

syn: repugnant; abominable             ant: lovable

I find the task of punishing you most odious.

onus (noun)

                responsibility for a difficult task

syn: burden                                           ant: act willingly; benefit

For the rest of his life, Mr. Chillingworth bore the onus of

his sin.

ostentatious (adjective)

                showy or excessive display

syn: flamboyant                                  ant: humble

The entire awards ceremony was too ostentatious for my taste.

parochial (adjective)

                limited in range or scope

syn: narrow                                           ant: broad

Theresa’s parochial outlook kept her from appreciating all that the city had to offer.

parsimonious (adjective); parsimony (noun)

                extreme frugality

syn: stingy                                             ant: generous

Mr. Stingy parsimoniously declined to buy the Girl Scout’s cookies.

Week Thirteen

pensive (adjective)

                dreamily or wistfully thoughtful; thoughtful with a hint of sadness

syn: reflective

The pensive man gazed at the painting for a long time and then sighed.

  poignant (adjective)

                  painfully felt; emotionally touching or moving

syn: painful                                          ant: stoic; indifferent

“Danny Boy” is a haunting, poignant melody.

pretentious (adjective)

                making or having claims especially as to

excellence or worth

syn: flamboyant

Maxwell’s restaurant typically attracted pretentious snobs who wanted to be seen at the hottest spot in town.

prodigious (adjective)

                exciting amazement or wonder; extraordinary in

bulk, quantity or size

syn: enormous, monstrous                                ant: petite

In one year there was a prodigious increase in the cost of oil; prices nearly tripled.

pugnacious (adjective)

                having a quarrelsome or belligerent nature

syn: combative                                    ant: pacific

The pit bulldog is pugnacious, to say the least.

Week Fourteen

qualm (noun)

                an uneasy feeling or pang of conscience as to conduct; a sudden feeling of apprehensiveness

syn: compunction                              

His qualms of conscience had become so great that he decided to abandon his plans.

rapport (noun)

                relationship characterized by harmony, conformity,   or affinity

syn: compatible                   ant: feud; disagreement

A common interest in vampires brought Molly and Loretta

into closer rapport.

rendezvous (noun & verb)

                a place appointed for a meeting; to come or

bring together at a meeting

We agreed to meet after the test at Starbucks, our usual rendezvous.

replete (adjective)

                filled to capacity; abundantly supplied

syn: full; satiated ant: scarce; empty; insufficient

The Catcher in the Rye is replete with humorous situations.

salient (adjective)

                jetting upward; standing out conspicuously

syn: prominent

To solve the mystery, the detective first studied the salient facts of the case.

Week Fifteen

spurious (adjective)

                not genuine or authentic

syn: false                               ant: true, authentic

The hair-growth company made spurious claims about its product.

stigma (noun); stigmatize (verb)

                a mark of disgrace or infamy; to set some mark of disgrace or infamy upon

I do not want to stigmatize this young offender for life by sending him to prison.

subliminal (adjective)

                existing or operating below the threshold of consciousness

syn: exalted                         

We may not be aware of the subliminal influences which affect our thinking.

surfeit (noun)

                an over abundant supply

syn: excess                            ant: dearth

There was a surfeit of people buying tickets for the TV raffle.

taciturn (adjective)

                habitually or temperamentally disinclined to

talk; saying little

syn: quiet                                              ant: garrulous

Ralph was so taciturn that people thought he was asleep.

Week Sixteen

tenuous (adjective)

                thin or slender in form; thin in consistency; rare

syn: insignificant; trivial     ant: important; substantial

The allegiance of our allies is held by rather tenuous ties.

thwart (verb)

                to oppose successfully; prevent from accomplishing a purpose

syn: hinder; obstruct           ant: allow

He felt that everyone was trying to thwart his plans.

tumult (noun)

violent and noisy commotion or disturbance of a crowd or mob; uproar; a general outbreak , riot

syn: disorder; turbulence                    ant: order

The sudden appearance of the shark caused tumult and confusion among those swimming in the ocean.

umbrage (noun)

                offense; annoyance; displeasure or the slightest indication or vaguest feeling of suspicion

syn: pique, grudge, resentment

She took umbrage at his remarks.

unwittingly (adverb)

                unintentionally; by accident; inadvertently; without   fully realizing

syn: incognizant; haphazard                 ant: intentionally

I unwittingly opened a letter addressed to you.  Please

forgive me.

Week Seventeen

upshot (noun)

                final result

syn: outcome                      

The upshot of the rematch was that the former champion proved that he still possessed all the skills of his youth.

virulent (adjective); virulence (noun)

                extremely poisonous or venomous

syn: toxic                                              ant: friendly

Television violence is a virulent force in our culture.

waive (verb)

to refrain from claiming or insisting on; relinquish; forgo

syn: resign; renounce                          ant: demand

Austin will waive his right to a pre-trial hearing in order to expedite the proceedings.

wistful (adjective)

                characterized by melancholy, longing, yearning

syn: pensive

She gets wistful whenever she thinks about her homeland.

wrest (verb)

                to twist or turn; pull; jerk or force by a violent twist

syn: wring; wrench             

With only ten seconds left to play, our team wrested victory from their grasp.